Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the 81-year-old longtime Republican leader, has batted away questions about his health after twice freezing on camera, insisting he has no plans to step down ahead of schedule as the leader of his party in the Senate.
Representative Nancy Pelosi, 83, the long-serving former House speaker, announced she would run for re-election in 2024, surprising some colleagues and observers by seeking a 20th term that she would finish at age 86.
Both were reminders that some veteran lawmakers are still hanging onto their jobs running the country at an age when most people are well into retirement.
Ms. Pelosi, who runs predominantly on a diet of chocolate and hot dogs, still hustles around the Capitol in her signature stilettos and shows little sign of age slowing her down. She did, however, step aside from leadership at the end of last year after Democrats lost the House majority.
Still, she doesn’t seem to think slowing down would be a reason to quit. Ms. Pelosi has been a vocal defender of a fellow aging California lawmaker, Senator Dianne Feinstein, 90, who has refused to entertain any notion of resigning before the end of her term, even as her frail health and memory issues have left her using a wheelchair and made it difficult for her to function on her own.
A couple of the oldest members have announced plans to retire in 2024, but most have given no indication that they intend to leave.
Here’s a list of the oldest members of Congress:
1. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, 90 (retiring)
2. Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, 89
3. Representative Grace F. Napolitano, Democrat of California, 86 (retiring)
4. Representative Bill Pascrell Jr., Democrat of New Jersey, 86
5. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, Democrat of the District of Columbia, 86
6. Representative Harold Rogers, Republican of Kentucky, 85
7. Representative Maxine Waters, Democrat of California, 85
8. Representative Steny H. Hoyer, Democrat of Maryland, 84
9. Representative Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California, 83
10. Representative James E. Clyburn, Democrat of South Carolina, 83
11. Representative Danny K. Davis, Democrat of Illinois, 82
12. Senator Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont, 82
13. Representative John Carter, Republican of Texas, 81
14. Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, 81
15. Representative Frederica S. Wilson, Democrat of Florida, 80
16. Representative Anna G. Eshoo, Democrat of California, 80
17. Representative Kay Granger, Republican of Texas, 80
18. Representative Rosa DeLauro, Democrat of Connecticut, 80
19. Senator Jim Risch, Republican of Idaho, 80
20. Representative Virginia Foxx, Republican of North Carolina, 80
Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
